If you tried to add or remove dependents from your VA records since 2011, you may need to contact the Department of Veterans Affairs to ensure your updates were actually recorded in the system. VA Admits Problems With Updating Dependents In Its System The VA has issued another apology for failure to process claims. This… Read more »
In the summer of 2023, wildfires decimated portions of Hawaii on the island of Maui. One town, Lahaina, was completely wiped out by the fires, said to be the worst in the United States in over a century. Hawaii has a large veteran population and many experience complications or interruptions of VA benefits as a… Read more »
The 2024 budget for the Department of Veterans Affairs is in danger of being vetoed; in the last full week of July 2023, the White House stated that the VA funding bill is rife with controversy over VA policies on reproductive care and is unacceptable in its current form. The House VA budget proposal for… Read more »
PACT Act legislation provides expanded VA benefits access for qualifying surviving spouses and dependents, including expanded possibilities under the VA program known as DIC, or VA Dependency and Indemnity Compensation. Before the Act, it was harder to qualify for DIC, but now more survivors may have eligibility and should apply to the VA for it…. Read more »
The Department of Veteran Affairs has announced changes in how it handles claim appointments and processes VA claims post-pandemic. The VA response to the pandemic included policies that delayed certain in-person claim procedures, but those have since ended, as we’ll examine below. Why VA Policies are Changing In the first quarter of 2020, a national… Read more »
Ever since the passage of the PACT Act, which expands VA benefits to qualifying veterans who suffer medical complications from duty-related toxic exposures, there has been a rise in scams targeting those who might benefit from the PACT Act. How widespread is this problem? The official site for AARP notes, “With new benefits come new… Read more »
Do you need help filling out a VA claim application form? If so, plenty of third-party agencies offer to help; everyone from the DAV to the VFW offers assistance. But those agencies aren’t the only ones; there are also third-party companies offering to help. Unfortunately, some of these companies don’t mind charging exorbitant fees to… Read more »
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder or PTSD is a mental health issue that can be diagnosed and rated by the VA as a service-connected disability. If you are about to retire or separate from military service and suspect you may have a PTSD claim, knowing how the VA reviews and rates this condition for compensation is helpful…. Read more »
In 2021, we reported on the Department of Veterans Affairs installation of a new electronic health records system, debuting at selected Pacific Northwest sites. The new electronic healthcare records system was intended to help “…improve how physicians store and manage patient information concerning visits, test results, prescriptions, and other crucial information.” This is all the… Read more »
Have you filed a claim for VA benefits under the PACT Act? This legislation created new “presumptive conditions” for troops exposed to toxic operations such as burn pits, the use of Agent Orange, and duty-related radiation exposure. Under PACT Act guidelines, those submitting claims to the VA may get automatic approval for 24 newly added… Read more »